“Pentecost is the birthday of the Church, the day when the Church began”
Dates & Seasons
“We celebrate Christmas because it commemorates Jesus’ birth, Easter for the victory of Christ our Saviour, and Pentecost for the pouring out of the Holy Spirit. In celebrating Pentecost we need to take the way of the disciples as a model for our Church,” says The Rev’d Daniel Jayaraj
While growing up in India, I knew only a little about Pentecost Sunday, and what happened in the life of the disciples on Pentecost. It was in 1998 while I was in Germany that I first saw people celebrating Pentecost as a festival and proclaiming the following Monday a national public holiday. I was with an evangelical Lutheran Church, and the service really brought me to the light of Pentecost, which is the day the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the disciples in a room in Jerusalem. The church service was very special, with a great party after the Eucharist.
The Holy Spirit came on the day of Pentecost as a fulfilment of prophecy and as the answer to the community’s expectant prayers. This was the clear sign of God’s faithfulness. God’s Spirit was poured out upon the community of believers. As described in Acts 2.1-12, the presence of the Holy Spirit in the community’s life was indicated first by the miracle of speaking in unknown foreign languages. It was a real show of God working in collaboration with real people. The Galilean disciples were filled with the Spirit to work on God’s behalf in their own land. The people, who were in fear, were strengthened by the Spirit and started standing for justice. The Jesus Movement, the Church, started.
Pentecost changed the lives of Jesus’ followers. After Jesus death, resurrection and ascension, they were fearful, scared, broken and very confused. The coming of the Holy Spirit gave them courage to witness to Christ as their Lord and Saviour. They sold their belongings and shared the proceeds with everyone, so there were no rich or poor — all were equal (Acts 4. 34-37). The disciples also shared their money with others who needed it (Acts 11.29-30).
St Philip preached and reportedly performed miracles in Samaria. The Spirit of God then took him to the wilderness to spread the gospel to an Ethiopian eunuch, just to one special person, so there is no gender issue in the Jesus Movement (Acts 8.26–39).
The disciples, who were agitated when Jesus connected with Gentiles — people who were not Jewish — were now seeking them and making them disciples, including Cornelius the Centurion who is considered to be the first Gentile to convert to the faith (Acts 10).
Looking at the way the disciples led through the Jesus Movement, I am always challenged whenever I read the book of Acts. St Luke, who is believed to be the author of Acts, clearly describes how the good news spread throughout the world, which started on the day of Pentecost.
Pentecost is the birthday of the Church, the day when the Church began, the day when the disciples were empowered with the Holy Spirit. We celebrate Christmas because it commemorates Jesus’ birth, Easter for the victory of Christ our Saviour, and Pentecost for the pouring out of the Holy Spirit. In celebrating Pentecost we need to take the way of the disciples as a model for our Church.
The Holy Spirit leads us, guides us, and gives us courage to proclaim Jesus as a Saviour to the world. This means that where justice and love are poured out like rain, everyone sees an image of God in the stranger, where there is no hunger and love is the only language of the people. Only the Holy Spirit can bring that change in human hearts.
In our denominational churches, including the one where I serve as Rector, the Holy Spirit is often kept to interior individual devotion. However, looking at many of the non-denominational churches, they appear to embrace the Holy Spirit more communally. I strongly feel we need to do more learning, growing and talking about the Holy Spirit, who unites us all.
We are hosting a Pentecost Convention in our parish this weekend to explore more about the Holy Spirit and to be encouraged and strengthened, just like the early disciples, to move the world. Our prayer is that people’s lives can be changed through this weekend’s convention.
Editor’s note: Gather at The Parish of Chermside between 5pm Friday 17 May 2024 and 10am Sunday 19 May 2024 for an exciting weekend dedicated to the Holy Spirit to celebrate Pentecost. Guest speaker is Bishop Devasahayam, with activities and talks, hearty soup and curry meals, Indian and African choirs, and a Sunday Eucharist with Bishop Devasahayam as guest preacher. RSVP by 12 noon Friday 17 May via office@allsaintschermside.org.au.
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